The clarion., 1887-10-12
UN0CCGPIED FIELDS.
DISCOURSE BY REV. DR.. TALMAcE
AT THE TABERNACLE.

The Churches Must stop Bombarding
the oId IronoIad sinners-why People
Go Into skepticism-Northern Nations
Devastated by Alcoholism.
BEooELYS, Oct 9.-The audiences at
the Brooklvn Tabernacle this autumn are
larger than at any time during the his
tory Of this church, and greater numbers
go away not able 20 get in. Led by cor
net and organ the congregation sang
wish great power the hymn:
Tic morning light is breaking,
flie dark1eas disappears.
Tie sons of men are waking
T0 peuitefitial tears.
The Res, y de Witt Talmage, d. D.,
read and explained passages Of Scripture
concerning the dawn Of universal right
e0usnr The subject Of his sermon was
"Uno, tfled itlds and ths text from
Romar- Ey 20. Lest ! should build
upon another mans foundation Dr.
Ialmle- -ail.
Stirring ports come from all parJs Of
Amcrica h1aiug what great work the
churches of God are doing. and / CON
Rratu'atc tHam and their pastors. Mis-
appreheH have been going the
round, .us tlat the outside benevo-
lences ci ta- particular church are neg
lectca "u The fact Is that large sums
Of raaa. are being raised in various
way DIS church for all styles Of good
Obj.c NOT always through the boards
Of our uHn denomination. This church
wa built by aIl denominations Of Chris
tians- and by many sections Of this land
and o.Aar lands, and that obligation has
led u- tp raise money for many objects
not connected with our denomination,
and this accounts for the fact that we
have not regularly contributed to all the
boards commended. But rejoice in that
You have done. as church, magnificent
work and ana grateful that we have re-
ceived during the year, by the confession
Of faith Ina Christ, 12j souls, which fact
] mention. not in boasting, but in defense
of this church, showing it has been
neither idle nor inefficient. The most of
our accessions have been from the outside
world, 50 that, taking the idea Of my
text, we have not been building on other
peoples foundations.
In laying ont the plan Of his missionary
tour Paul sought out town and cities
which had not set been preached to. He
l'f.H ~ Nahti tItNAlF 70 CITY DltINlOltl lOf
eulcu1Or and vice, and Jerusalem. where
the priesthood and the Sanhedrim were
ready 10 leap with both feet upon the
Christian religion. He feels he has
especial work To- do. aud he means TO do
It. Nhat was the result; The grandest
life of usefulness THAT man ever lived.
We modern Christian workers are not
apt to initiate Paul. We build on an
other peoples foundations. If we erect
a church we prefer 10 have it filed with
families all or whom have been pious Do
we gather Sabbath school class, we want
good boys and girls. hair conbed faces
washed, manners attractive So church
in tins day is apt to be built out OF other
churches. Some ministers spend all their
time IN fishing IN other peoples ponds
and tiey throw the line into that church
pond and jerk ont a Methodist, and throw
the line into another church pond and
bring out 20 Presbyterian. or there is
religious row in some ucighborng church.
and a whole school Of fish swim off from
that pond and we take them all in with
one sweep Of the net What is gained?
Absolutely nothing for the general cause
Of Christ 10 is only as in an army. when
a regiment is transferred from one divi-
sion TO another, from the Tennessee to
the Potomac.
What strengthens the army is new re-
crWts What / have always desired is
that while wc are courteous to those COM
ing from other focks, we build our
church not out of other churches. but out
OF tie world. lest we build on another
man s foundation. The fact is, this is a
big world When in our schoolboy days
we learned the diameter and circumfer-
enCc Oi this planet, we did not learn half.
1t is the latitude and longitude and diam
eter and circumference of want and woe
and sin that no figures can calculate.
This one spiritual continent of wretched-
ness reaches across all zones, and if |
Were called 10 give its geographical
boundary, ! would say it is bounded on
the north and south and east and west bv
the great heart Of Gods sympathy and
love. Oh. il is great world. Since 6
O'Clock this morning so, 500 persons have
been born, and all these multiplied popu-
lations are 90 be reached of the Cos
pei. In England, or in our east
ern American cities, we are be-
ing much crowded, and an acre of
ground is Of great value. but out west
500 acres is a small farm and 90, 600 acres
Is no unusual possession. There is a vast
field here and everywhere unoccupied.
plenty of room more, not building on an
other man S foundation.
We need rs churches to stop lombard
ing the old ironclad sinners that have
beer proof against thirty years of Christian
assault. Alas for that church which
lacks the spirit of evangelism, spending
on one chandelier enough to light 500
souls to glory. and in one carved pillar
enou.sh TO have made thousand men
'pilErs in the house of our God forever
and doing less good than many a log cabin
meeting liouse with tallow candles stuck
IN wooden sockets and minister who
has never seen college or known the
difference between Greek and Choctaw.
Wpnced as churches to get into sympa-
thy with The great outside world, and let
them know that none are so broken
hearted or hardly bestead that will not
be welcomed. ''No. " says some fastidi-
Gus Cbnaian. n don't like to be crowded
in church. Don't put any one in my
pew. Ny brother. what viii Won do
in heaven When a great multitude
that no nl;nn can number assemblies they
VIII put fifty in your pew. What are
the select few today assembled in the
Christian churches compared with the
mightier nsilions outside Of them SO0.-
coo in Brooklyn, but less than 100. 600
in the clurciles? Many Of the churches
are Ikea hospital that should advertise
that IFS patients must have nothing
worse than toothache rounds, . but |
no broken hegas, no crushed ankles, no |
fractured In sas. Give Us lor treatment |
modesGte sinners, velvet coated sinners |
and sinno-s with gloss on, 1t as though |
. man had fs-n of J, 600 acres and put
all his work on one acre. He may raise
never so large ears of corn, never
SO hig heads OF wheat, be would
reInain poor. The church Of God has |
bestowed its chief care on one acre and !
has raised splendid men and women in
that small inclosure, but the field is the
world. That means North and South
America, Europe, Asia and Africa, and
al the islands of the sea. Ii is as though
after great battle there were left so. 600
wounded and dying On the field, and
three surgeons gave all their time to
three patients under their charge. The
major general comes in and SAYS to the
doctors: Come out here and look at the
nearly 50.0 600 dying for lack of surgical
No, say the three doc
tors, standing there, tanning their pa
hents, .we have three important cases
here and we are attending TO them. and
when we are not positively busy with
their wounds, it takes all our time to
keep the flies off. !" In this awful battle
Of sin and sorrow, where millions have
fallenton millions, DO not let US spend all
our time in taking care of few people. |
and when the command comes: ssGo into
lhe world, say practically: mo, cam
not go; have here few choice cases,